UVM president asks House Education for inflation aid, cancer center support and backing for multipurpose center

Marlene Trump, the new president of the University of Vermont, told the House Education Committee on Feb. 4 that the university is seeking a 3% inflationary increase aligned with the governor's budget, $1,000,000 per year for five years to support the UVM Cancer Center, and legislative backing for a governor-proposed $15,000,000 contribution to a multipurpose center.

Trump said the requests are meant to protect need-based aid, sustain tuition discounts for in-state medical students and expand extension services to all 14 counties. "We have requested in alignment with the governor's budget proposal, a 3% inflationary increase," she told committee members, laying out how the funds would be applied.

The president framed the funding requests within a broader strategic plan she will present to the UVM board soon. She highlighted access measures the university already provides: "for a family that makes less than $100,000 a year, that family student can attend UVM for $0 in tuition," and said that roughly 48% of students benefit from direct university support. Trump also reported that nearly 4,000 Vermont students attend UVM and that 32% of Vermont first-year students are Pell eligible.

Trump emphasized UVM's role in the state's workforce and research ecosystem. She noted UVM's Carnegie R1 research classification and said the university brought in "over $225,000,000" in research funding last fiscal year. Among research efforts she cited were Lake Champlain studies, development of a tick-borne illness vaccine and regional biotech acceleration programs.

On economic development, Trump described the VN Tech Hub and industry partnerships (including work with GlobalFoundries) that train students for semiconductor manufacturing. She said UVM received $3,400,000 for that work and that a previously proposed $20,000,000 federal grant was frozen during funding cuts but has advanced to a later review stage.

Trump announced a recent $16,000,000 estate gift to reduce costs for nursing students and reiterated the multipurpose center proposal, explaining the project was approved in 2019 but stalled during the pandemic and that cost escalations required renewed fundraising. She said the Tarrant estate has pledged $15,000,000 and that donor Chuck Davis has offered a matching pledge; she also said additional fundraising would be necessary to reach a roughly $101,000,000 project target.

During committee questions, members asked about retention and enrollment trends. Committee members cited a figure of about 11,600 undergraduates; Trump said the university is holding steady and cited a mid-80s retention rate (a member stated "86, I think"). She described a strategic-plan-driven effort to standardize data and measure student success and told members UVM will pursue communications and philanthropic campaigns to mitigate the region's "demographic cliff."

Law and policy questions included federal changes to graduate borrowing; Trump said the policy revisions could reduce access for some graduate students and described plans to seek philanthropic solutions to fill gaps. Wendy, a participant in the presentation, noted a PSAC loan product designed to help professionals bridge financing gaps while rates remain comparatively low.

No formal votes or legislative actions were recorded at the hearing. Trump said fundraising and continued donor commitments are central to advancing the multipurpose center if the governor's contribution is not provided.

Next steps: Trump said the university's strategic plan will be presented to the UVM board and that she will continue fundraising and outreach; the committee did not take a vote on any of the requests.